The story of the model

Here’s some background on that scale model of the Hudson area, which according to an article by Jamie Larson in The Register-Star is now in a City garage looking for a home:

• The model cost about $5,000 to commission, and comes in two parts (each roughly 4 x 8 feet, making a square).

• It includes parts of Greenport, not just Hudson.

• It was built by William (Bill) Sweet of Northampton, Mass., a model-maker who works primarily for real estate developers, found by Richard Katzman who paid for the project. Both are pictured below with me in Bill’s studio, making corrections and additions to the unfinished model.

• In addition to topo maps and aerial photos, Sweet worked from stats and snapshots (gathered by yours truly) to add details and clarify layouts.

• To save time and cost, in some cases an estimated number of buildings-per-block were included rather than trying to build precise models of every major and minor building. So with the exception of prominent structures like Bliss Towers, The Opera House and the proposed SLC project, not every structure is necessarily to exact scale nor in precise locations. That said, there is a surprising amount of detail and the overall effect is highly accurate.

• The model came with armatures for stringing cotton plumes from the model of the proposed 406-foot St. Lawrence Cement plant stack; also, for public display, a plexiglass cover was created. Whether these still exist or not is not clear.

• It was unveiled at the July 6th, 2002 Friends of Hudson members picnic, which drew approximately 500 attendees, at the Federation of Polish Sportsmen, whose property would have been surrounded by the plant’s 1,200 acres of quarries.

Some additional photos of the model (in progress, at the unveiling, and completed) follow below.